My
lampwork beads are all handmade by me from Italian Moretti and Effetre
and German Lauscha "soft" glass. They are annealed in a digitally
controlled kiln which means they are stronger, more durable and less
likely to break than beads that have not undergone this process (such
as mass produced, cheaper versions). They are still glass, however
tough, and the usual care needs to be taken when creating your
jewellery or wearing them.

I
use an electric bead reamer to clean the holes so the beads are ready
for you to use when you receive them and they won't leave "white
stuff" all over your stringing materials.

Just a word in your ear........

My beads are
usually one of a kind - there are so many colour combinations to be experimented with that I can't wait to try something new . For this reason I generally don't duplicate my beads so you can be assured that the focal bead or set you buy will be very unique. It takes around 45 minutes to an hour (longer for bigger, more
complex beads) to produce one of my focal beads as each layer of glass
has to be added and melted in separately and there are often many
layers of glass in just one bead. The annealing process - to
strengthen/toughen the glass and release the stress that can cause
cracks - takes several hours and then I also need to allow time (and
the correct tools of course..) to clean the holes of the powdery
substance called bead release. For these
reasons, I cannot sell my beads for the same prices that mass produced
beads sell for. The vast majority of mass produced beads
are not annealed or cleaned, may be made with inferior glass, have tool
or "chill" marks present and are sold very cheaply so please be
discerning with your purchases particularly if you desire to own
quality lampworked art glass beads.